Particulate air pollution can up risk of premature death, study shows 31% increase in cases globally

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

air pollution rose from 2.6 million in 1990 to 3.5 million in 2019, a 31 per cent worldwide increase, according to a study. The research, published on Wednesday in Journal of the American Heart Association, analysed particulate matter (PM) pollution as a risk factor for death and disability using freely available data from 204 countries collected between 1990 and 2019 and detailed in the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study.PM pollution consists of small particles of liquid and solids suspended in the air and inhaled into the lungs, such as vehicle emissions, smoke, dust, pollen and soot.

Exposure to PM pollution was estimated using a tool from the 2019 update to the GBD study that incorporated information from satellite and ground-level monitoring, computer models of chemicals in the atmosphere and land-use data. The researchers from Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran analysed changes over time in years of life lost due to premature death (YLLs), years lived with disability (YLDs) and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs).

DALYs is a measure that considers both the loss of life and the impact on quality of life to assess the full impact of a health condition on a population. The analysis found that the total number of premature deaths and years of cardiovascular disability from cardiovascular diseases attributable to PM air pollution rose from 2.6 million in 1990 to 3.5 million in 2019, a 31 per cent worldwide increase.

The increase in overall deaths was unevenly distributed, with a 43 per cent increase among men compared to a 28.2 per cent increase among women, the researchers said. Between 1990 and 2019, there was a 36.7 per cent decrease in age-standardised premature deaths attributed to PM pollution,